Archaeological wood characteristics

Archaeological Wood Table III. Sorption Characteristics of Buried Wood ... 

Such clear-cut distinctions, however, are often difficult to make because the early histories of many samples are not well known. In addition, the literature on the chemical composition of dry archaeological wood is so sparse that comparisons to waterlogged counterparts are not very informative. Therefore these two wood types will be discussed together, but distinguished where possible. The focus of the following section will be on chemical properties that most older woods from natural environments hold in common and likely reasons for these characteristics. 

Complex degradation processes generally occur to some degree, even in controlled environments. In the case of wood, such processes terminate in reversion to topsoil in the natural environment. The conservation of archaeological wood might best be defined as any effort directed toward the retention of desirable intrinsic characteristics. In other words, conservation attempts to slow down or reverse the process that turns a fauteuil into fertilizer. Consolidation is one of a number of treatments available to conservation. Before approaching the technical aspects of consolidation, it is useful to have an overview of the process and to relate its role to the field of conservation. 

The value of archaeological wood is, like all values, relative. Value, like beauty, lies in the eye of the beholder and consists as much of the expectations of the beholders as of the characteristics of the object under scrutiny. Who then, are the beholders, the ultimate arbiters, of the value of archaeological wood What are the distinguishing criteria of its value ... 

Kim, Y. S. and Singh, A. P. (1999). Micromorphological characteristics of compression wood degradation in waterlogged archaeological pine wood. Holzforschung 53 381-385. 

Dry Wood. Archaeological dry wood does not have the problems of waterlogged wood. Thus, the intensity of research in terms of analyses and treatments has not been comparable. Strength characteristics are considered if the wood is a weight-bearing member. The solution to loss of strength for such components is replacement or reinforcement with epoxy or similar materials. 

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